Pain throbbed through Jorghan's head. He shifted slightly, feeling soft fabric beneath him instead of the forest floor. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open to reveal canvas walls and filtered sunlight.
He saw white walls around him, and he was lying on a bed, a bed! The table beside his bed contained bottles and vials. He could tell from one glance that he was in a tent.
He was in a tent – but how?
"You're awake," said a woman's voice.
Jorghan turned his head to see a tall woman sitting on a stool nearby.
She wasn't Nor'vack – her skin lacked their brownish tint, and she stood only about six feet tall. Her dark hair was pulled back in a tight braid, and she wore practical clothes that suggested someone used to working outdoors.
She was the one who saved him in the woods and brought him here.
"Where am I?" Jorghan asked, his throat dry.
The woman handed him a cup of water.
"Our camp, at the edge of the forest. I found you fighting those beasts among the trees. You're lucky I was out there to save you."
Jorghan drank greedily, then looked around the tent. It contained simple furnishings – a small table, two stools, and the cot he was lying on. Outside, he could hear voices and movement, suggesting many people nearby.
"What's your name, boy? And how did you end up alone in the forest? That's dangerous territory, especially for a child."
"I don't quite remember what happened." Jorghan looked at her, studying her features, her clothing, and her accent; everything was different from what he knew about humans. She looked and spoke like a civilised person; to put it more bluntly, he felt like he was talking to a woman from his previous world.
"Where is your home?" Her question brought him back from his reverie.
For now, he didn't reveal anything about himself or where he was from.
"I live on the edge of the forest and lost my way when I was chasing a wild bear which I was hunting."
"You were hunting alone," she said, raising her eyebrow.
"I usually hunt with my father, but today he was on the other side, taking care of the big ones, while I was going after the smaller ones."
"Is that so?" she said, looking sceptical.
"Do you remember how you got attacked? You were injured pretty badly," she asked, staring at him.
Jorghan hesitated. He could tell that she was not buying his story. "I... I don't remember clearly. I can't seem to recollect."
"You don't remember?" The woman leaned forward, studying his face with new interest. "Nothing at all about how you got there?"
"No," Jorghan lied, avoiding her gaze. "I remember chasing and fighting a beast."
The woman nodded slowly. "My name is Yvonne. We will talk again; for now, take rest."
Jorghan did as she said and closed his eyes, pretending to fall asleep.
That woman stood there for a moment, studying him.
After a brief moment, she left the tent.
A couple of minutes later, Jorghan opened his eyes.
Jorghan carefully swung his legs off the cot, testing his weight. His ankle was wrapped in a bandage but felt much better. He slowly moved to the exit of the tent, seeing if there was anyone.
No one was standing guard, so he slowly sneaked out of the tent.
He wanted to see what this camp was about and where this camp was set up.
And he slowly moved to the back of the tent; he stood before a large settlement.
The sight that greeted him was surprising.
The tent was one of dozens arranged in neat rows at the forest's edge. He could see the giant Aranian forest.
Beyond them, in a large clearing, three massive airships were anchored, their hulls gleaming in the sunlight. Men and women in uniform moved purposefully throughout the camp, carrying equipment, checking the ships, or standing guard.
"What in the world is all this?" Jorghan muttered. He wasn't aware that humans had this type of things in this world. He thought this was just a typical medieval world.
Come to think of it, earlier the woman used guns with mana. He remembered.
Jorghan's curiosity was piqued as he watched the bustling activity in the camp.
Suddenly, he noticed men in uniforms moving towards his side, so he moved back inside the tent and slept on the bed once again.
His mind was reeling with the scene just now. Those airships, those people – they are here for something, and the technology they wielded, it was advanced to what he knew.